This is my last post for 2015 (and the other posts today haven't been in chronological order), but I want to take some time to reflect on what we've done this year.
We started the year with a resolution to do one hike every weekend - we didn't quite make that, but we did do 36 trips this year - this number includes hikes, day trips and overnighters. We've always traveled a lot, but this year has been special - instead of driving to places and gawking at sights, we have hiked over soft sand, steep trails and mucky, wet paths. We have seen whales, sea lions, harbor seals, elephant seals, sea otters, vultures, hawks, woodpeckers, quails, turkeys, bluejays, scrubjays, garter snakes, banana slugs, deer and elk - all "living free, and in the wild".
To a large extent, this was possible entirely because of my wife - she inspired us to get up and walk. The 5 y.o. (soon to be 6!) has become a really good walker, and we've started carrying binoculars on our hikes (and we recognize much more flora and fauna than we used to!).
Every hike rejuvenates us - every hike is a mini vacation. I'm looking forward to many more hikes in 2016! I'll end this year with a couple of quotes:
"Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wildness is a necessity" - John Muir
"I took a walk in the woods and came out taller than the trees" - Henry David Thoreau
Happy New Year!
We started the year with a resolution to do one hike every weekend - we didn't quite make that, but we did do 36 trips this year - this number includes hikes, day trips and overnighters. We've always traveled a lot, but this year has been special - instead of driving to places and gawking at sights, we have hiked over soft sand, steep trails and mucky, wet paths. We have seen whales, sea lions, harbor seals, elephant seals, sea otters, vultures, hawks, woodpeckers, quails, turkeys, bluejays, scrubjays, garter snakes, banana slugs, deer and elk - all "living free, and in the wild".
To a large extent, this was possible entirely because of my wife - she inspired us to get up and walk. The 5 y.o. (soon to be 6!) has become a really good walker, and we've started carrying binoculars on our hikes (and we recognize much more flora and fauna than we used to!).
Every hike rejuvenates us - every hike is a mini vacation. I'm looking forward to many more hikes in 2016! I'll end this year with a couple of quotes:
"Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wildness is a necessity" - John Muir
"I took a walk in the woods and came out taller than the trees" - Henry David Thoreau
Happy New Year!
